Thursday, 26 May 2011

8th visit to full of beans @ straits quay

I am a serious coffee lover as i drink my coffee without milk and sugar, and i am alsosophisticate, macho, rebellious, eccentric, interesting, creative and honest because i drink my coffee without milk and sugar. I had a dream. In my dream, i am a coffee connoisseur, so today, when i having my 8th visit to Full of Beans, i want to act like a coffee connoisseur.

How to be a coffee connoisseur? I can not always rely on google,

i must do something different, i am no longer a coffee lover because i need at least one cup of white coffee a day, i am no longer a serious coffee lover because i drink my coffee without sugar and milk, i am a coffee connoisseur, i can not continue to rely on google, i must have a new way to find out how to be a coffee connoisseur, so this time i use MSN

This is what MSN said :-If you want to be a coffee connoisseur, you need to know a few things :-1). BEAN TYPE and VARIETY. There are two main bean types: Arabica and Robusta. Unless you are looking to make your own espresso blend, you will want to buy only Arabica beans, which are considered to have superior taste characteristics

2) BEAN LOCATION. There are four main coffee regions, each sharing some common taste characteristics - The Americas, Africa, Asia, and Indonesia. Coffee beans are grown in over 80 countries throughout the world, however a smaller number are considered the prime coffee growing regions due to superior climate, growing conditions and soil. Infrastructure and harvesting technology in these countries may also be important in order to be able to get beans to market at the proper time. Like wine, there are also distinct coffee growing regions and estates within these countries, each with distinctive taste characteristics. After you become familiar with the coffee from the countries you enjoy, you can further refine your taste by developing knowledge of these individual estates.
3)BEAN QUALITY. Cracked or defective beans may not retain or produce the optimum flavors. Certain countries have grades that incorporate not only size but also bean defects. The Specialty Coffee Association of America(SCAA)provides gradations specifically linked to bean quality. The top quality bean under the SCAA system is "Specialty Grade Green Coffee," containing fewer than 5 full defects per 300 grams of coffee. Refer to the link below for a list of their other grades.

4) WET OR DRY PROCESSING. Coffee beans must be processed to remove the coffee bean from the red outer chaff. The method of processing can make a large difference in the taste profiles of the beans. The more common method is some type of wet proceesing, which tends to yield a cleaner, brighter tastes. Dry processing involves the beans drying in the open sun until the husks are dried and cracked. Dry processing is considered by some to have a more earthy taste and commonly used in Brazil, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Yemen. Compare the taste of a dry processed coffee from one of these four countries with a wet-processed coffee from a country such as Columbia or Guatemala to experience the differences in taste from these two methods.

5)FRESHNESS OF ROAST. For optimum flavor, coffee should be consumed 14 day after roasting. After one month it will lose significant flavor..

6)TYPE OF ROAST. The lighter the roast, the more acidic and less sweet coffees tend to be, however the full range of flavor characteristics tend to be preserved. Darker roasting produces caramelizing of the beans' sugars and produces a sweeter, less acidic taste however some of the original taste characteristics may be burned off. Many feel that the full city roast is an ideal compromise to obtain the best of each. Specific roast are often recommended for particular beans, but any roast may be used for any bean. Experiment with different roasts for different beans to experience the widest range of flavor combinations. Since different roasters may call the same roast different names, it is best if you do your own roast identification using a chart of the different bean colors. Refer to the link below for such a chart.

So, i now i am a coffee connoisseur, because i know my coffee bean type, location, quality, processing, freshness and roast. Time to put that into use.

8TH VISIT

Open my apartment door, walk into the lift, come out from lift, open a door, here you are, Full of Bean. Here i come, a coffee connoisseur, a person who know his coffee bean type, location, quality, processing, freshness and roast. The superhero Thor was there, after the usual exchange "what's up bro, yeh, how are you?", he asked me what i want, i said something not in the menu, he said how about 'CARMEN"? OMG, the master roaster/owner must be playboy, few day ago asked me to try YAN 艳, now CARMEN, tommorrow MIMOKO, then may be AMINAH BT HASSAN , after that SUSILA A/P MANIAM???? Anyway, none of my business if he is a playboy, so i said why not. Thor brewed my coffee with the Belgium Pot

CARMEN was put right in front of me after 5 min, follow YAN 艳's procedure, 10 min let the coffee cool down, finished the coffee in 10 min, then stare at the empty cup and recalled the taste......

For me this is a good cup of coffee because i paid RM35 for that, that is all i know, nice, i like it, but according to msn :-

Erupting out of the cup was a bright, full of flavor aroma. There was luscious wave of warm chocolate. There was the citrus that Central American coffees are known for. It had hints of pineapples and oranges, just delicate hints compared the strong aroma that the Dreamsipple had yesterday.

From the first sip, I was impressed by how clean coffee tasting it was. It almost felt like I was drinking pure spring water. There was only minimal bitterness, with it being an overwhelmingly smooth coffee.

On the first layer of taste, there was a mellow nutty-chocolate flavor. Underneath was more citrus-y. It almost felt like the flavor was popping around on my tongue, like it was tingling with fresh orange juice and lemon drops

As a coffee connoisseur , i need to know my coffee bean type, location, quality, processing, freshness and roast, this is the Q & A with Thor :-

Bean Type : Arabica

Bean Location : Americans, Panama, from the estate called carmen

Bean Quality : Less than 5 full defect in 300g, SCAA view this as specialty coffee

Bean Processing : Wet

Bean Type of roast : medium

See, how a connoisseur asked question.

After the 8th visit, back to my apartment, looking at my computer, i miss my mother, today 7/5/2011 saturday, is mother's day. I called my mum, she asked me to call back later because she is watching movie in the cinema, i asked her what show, she said :-

and i hate THOR. Suddenly i remember i forgot to ask THOR about YAN艳， because I am a coffee connoisseur, as a coffee connoisseur , i need to know my coffee bean type, location, quality, processing, freshness and roast. I cannot get the information about YAN艳 in msn or google, So i decided to email THOR......